DES MOINES, Iowa — Mike Huckabee says Sen. John McCain is a hero. McCain says Huckabee is a good man. And they both seem to agree on this: Mitt Romney is neither.
The Republican rivals joined Sunday to criticize Romney — McCain in New Hampshire called him a waffler and Huckabee in Iowa questioned whether he can be trusted with the presidency, a sign of Romney’s strength in both states.
Romney’s camp accused the hard-charging Huckabee of “testiness and irritability,” a reflection of the brass-knuckles phase of the most open presidential race in half a century. Much is at stake: Iowa kicks off the election process Thursday with Democratic and Republican caucuses that could propel two candidates to the nomination.
“Whoever wins Iowa could be the next president of the United States,” said Democratic consultant Stephanie Cutter, adding that a compressed election schedule may put a premium on momentum this year “and Iowa can be a rocket booster.”
New Hampshire votes just five days after Iowa.
The dynamics aren’t quite the same on the Republican side, but GOP consultant Scott Reed said Iowa “is going to make or break three-quarters of all the candidates.”
Huckabee said Sunday he may have been hurt by Romney ads and mailings criticizing his record as governor of Arkansas. He accused Romney of running a “very desperate and, frankly, a dishonest campaign.”
Romney has been less than candid about his record and campaign plans, a fact seized upon by Huckabee.
“If you aren’t being honest in obtaining a job,” Huckabee said, “can we trust you to be honest if you get the job?”
Huckabee defended McCain against negative ads by Romney.
“I felt like that when Mitt Romney went after the integrity of John McCain, he stepped across a line,” Huckabee told NBC. “John McCain’s a hero in this country. He’s a hero to me.”
United by a common foe, the Arizona senator spoke up for Huckabee. “Look, I’m flattered that (Romney) would be attacking me. He’s attacking Huckabee in Iowa, who’s a good man. And it shows that they’re worried,” McCain said.
On the Democratic side, the winner in Iowa will be hard to stop, especially if it’s a well-funded Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York or Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.
As six candidates offered their closing messages on the morning talk shows, Obama acknowledged criticism about lack of experience in Washington might be taking a toll.
“That may have some effect, but ultimately I’m putting my faith in the people of Iowa and the people of America that they want something better,” Obama told NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Playing the experience card, Clinton told ABC’s “This Week” that as first lady from 1993-2001 she was “intimately involved in so much that went on in the White House, here at home and around the world.”
While she was one of the most influential first ladies in history, Clinton had her limits. She did not attend National Security Council meetings, did not receive the presidential daily briefing on terrorism and other threats and did not have a top level security clearance.
She is married to one of the most popular figures in the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton, and his return to the White House as first spouse would break new ground.
“He will not have a formal, official role, but just as presidents rely on wives, husbands, fathers, friends of long years, he will be my close confidante and adviser as I was with him,” Sen. Clinton said, adding that attending NSC meetings “wouldn’t be appropriate” for her husband.
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